hit 90 as philadelphians seem to enjoy basking in the early autumn sun in rittenhouse square and it appears this unusual weather will hang around for the first half of the week. let's go to live to meteorologist cecily tynan. cecily, what do the facts and figures say from accuweather. >> jim, we've had two days in a row of near record warmth, not feeling like late september at all. yesterday's high 92, 3 degrees shy of the record high of 95 and today our high 91 degrees, just 1 degree shy of the record high of 92. those records both set back in 1970. so, not a record in philadelphia, although allentown tied a record high of 92. that's the only area with the records but trenton 90, wilmington it was hot, 91, reading 90 and a little bit cooler along the shore, atlantic city airport 84 degrees. but if you look at the high temperatures across the eastern half of the country, you can see it's going to be awhile before we cool down. chicago 92, saint louis 91 but there's a cold front and west

of that front temperatures in the 60's and 50's so much cooler air will be arriving but it really doesn't get here until the end of the week. next two days still very warm and humid. hurricane maria continues to roll very slowly just off the coast of cape hatteras and what will happen with that storm, that same cold front that brings us the cool air will kick maria out to sea but for the next three days with maria so close that high rip current risk continues. be very careful, do not get in the weather. those rip currents have proved deadly over the past weekend. i'll talk more about maria, also talk about the big cooldown on the way coming up in the full accuweather forecast. jim. >> thank you cecily. investigators scouring the wreckage of a small plane crash that narrowly missed a home in whitpain township. part of the plane's wing wound up on the roof the rest of it in the front yard on meade road. the two seater went down shortly after taking off from

nearby wing's field. the pilot 29-year-old philip beckner from maryland remains in critical condition. authorities are hoping that a new reward will hope them capture a man considered armed and dangerous. 30-year-old gregory feldman has been on the run since friday. police say he shot his former girlfriend's mother at her home on longmeadow drive in limerick. the 48-year-old victim is still recovering but she is expected to survive. the montgomery county district attorney's office is now offering $1,000 for information leading to feldman's arrest. this is barry baker. he coldcocked a man with cerebral palsy back on may tenth in west chester and today he finally pleaded guilty. "action news" reporter john rawlins is live at the chester county courthouse. john, you've got the details. >> that's right, jim. well, authorities here had been preparing for a jury trial today. the defendant's claim was that the punch which was captured on video only told part of the

story, that the two men had had a prior dustup at a particular night spot earlier that evening. but then came evidence that seemed to shut that theory down. it was a video that caused a stir, a 7-eleven shortly after 2:00 a.m., a young disabled man targeted, mocked, then punched in the face by a man he never met before defendant barry baker. today michael ryan the target of that attack glad baker finally pleaded guilty. >> just happy it's over. you know, the fact that it's over. >> reporter: as late as last week baker claimed the video didn't tell the story. his defense the two men confronted one another earlier at a nearby bar barnaby's and the 7-eleven incident was a continuation of that spat. barnaby's face haas a photo system. >> they keep that record as a running record of who their patrons were. >> reporter: it showed mr. baker there was. >> yes. >> reporter: and mr. ryan

was not. >> that's correct. >> reporter: ryan was not there because he was working the the family business bartending at ryan's pub until 2:00 a.m. his father was asked today how michael handled what occurred. >> i don't think he wants the attention. he never wanted any attention about any and disabilities he has. he doesn't claim disabilities, he's a hard working kid, you know, and i'm very proud of the way he's handled himself. >> reporter: well, meanwhile baker the defendant is expected to be sentenced sometime in the next one to two months. in has to be a presentencing report made first. his attorney said though it is possible he could face a sentence of two to four years because of what happened. live in west chester, john rawlins channel6 "action news." jim. >> thank you, john. a wilmington delaware school community is protesting the removal of their principal. salome thomas el wall placed on a leave of absence from thomas edison charter school but the school board has not disclosed why. today parents were busy making signs ahead of a rally in

support of thomas el tonight. they say he was loved and respected by his students and his staff. >> we want answers to why this happened, why the embarrassment to this principal, okay. i don't know what they're going to say but they better have a good one because this is not right. >> the school which is well known for its champion chess team says it does not comment on personal matter -- on personnel matters. a somber ceremony this afternoon marking the one year anniversary of a house fire that killed three wilmington firefighters. the day of the blaze september 24th has officially been declared a day of remembrance for lieutenant christopher leach, senior firefighter jerry fickes and ardythe hope. three portraits were unveiled that will hang at each station where these men and women served. leach and fickes died at the scene after the first floor collapsed. hope was critically injured

and died several weeks later. tonight some residents at the jersey shore have been asked to conserve water. it's because of the 40-year-old pipe that broke sometime over the weekend at baeder field in atlantic city. at one point it was leaking sewage on the old airport grounds and into the surrounding bodies of water. the atlantic county utilities authority is on the scene making repairs. the utility wants people in atlantic city, margate, ventnor and longport to conserve water to minimize flow through the damaged line. a family from richboro bucks county is back home tonight. that after an emotional reunion at philadelphia international airport. their daughter withstood the onslaught of hurricane maria while she was in the caribbean and boy, is she thrilled to be back home. "action news" reporter jeanette reyes has the story. >> reporter: for a minute this mother and daughter embraced emotional and grateful beyond words for moments they feared would never come to be. >> the students were more worried about the fact that

the parents didn't know that we were okay. >> reporter: she's a med student at roth university school of medicine in the caribbean island of dominica. the nation of 75,000 was ravaged by a ferocious category five hurricane that killed over two dozen people. >> it turned into a category five so quickly that i think no one was really expecting any of this to happen. >> reporter: she and her friends hunk kerred down on the university campus bracing for hurricane maria. she still remembers the haunting sound of the wind whistling and howling. this is what she walked out to. >> you don't really understand it until you're there. >> reporter: meanwhile back at home her mother said her world came to a halt. she lost connection with her daughter. three seemingly never ending days dragged on. she stayed home from work, sobbed much of the time and prayed. >> there would be times that i would be crying for like i don't know how long and like my other kids at home will come and they will, you know, try to give me strength.

>> reporter: the 24-year-old was able to evacuate on a ferry and took a 14 hour trip to saint lucia then took a plane to miami. eventually she was able to call home. >> i didn't get to talk to her until friday for hardly about 10 seconds. and that was the best, best ever 10 seconds of my life. >> reporter: the sardar family shared with me that their thoughts and prayers are for puerto ricans who still have not heard back from their family members. they are hoping that more donations will pour in for the caribbean islands to help them rebuild. reporting at philadelphia international airport, jeanette reyes channel6 "action news." >> and coming up on "action news" tonight, kindness comes back to a woman in willow grove in the form of a new roof over her head. and injuries put a damper on all the eagles excitement after word that darren sproles is out for the season. those stories and much more when "action news" continues tonight. >> ♪

>> police in mount laurel are still investigating the 'cause of a deadly collision between a motorcycle and a school bus. the motorcyclist was killed in the crash at 8:00 this morning on south church street near country lane. fortunately no students on the bus were injured. the parents of convicted cop killer eric frein are facing a wrongful death lawsuit. frein was living with his parents in 2014 when he ambushed a state police barracks killing corporal bryan dickson and wounding a second trooper. dixon's widow has filed a lawsuit against the freins claiming they psychologically manipulated their son into developing a strong dislike

for police and acting on that dislike. frein was sentenced to death in april. one of delaware's busiest roads is now dedicated to the families of fallen service members. a section of route 202 has been designated a gold star highway. military veterans and delaware governor john carney were part of the ceremony in wilmington today. a family in willow grove has long been known for giving of itself to others especially members of the service and veterans but this family that has given so much is now being given to. and what a reaction. "action news" reporter katherine scott has that story. >> reporter: a new roof to top the lewis family home in willow grove. a gift they appreciate from the bottom of their heart. >> this is like a gift from god to us. this is like a miracle. >> reporter: patty lewis the founder of america for our veterans has helped thousands of service members and veterans for more than a decade.

her son is a marine vet with past tours in iraq and afghanistan. >> my son was on his third deployment in four years and i knew the kind of support the guys needed and what they needed. >> reporter: now it's her family who needs help even though she explains she'd much rather be giving it. >> it all started when her husband lost his job in 2008. >> i know that people that went through this with the recession at our age are still going through it now because the repercussions of what we had to do to stay alive we've used everything. >> reporter: she was diagnosed with noncancerous brain tumors and this past year her husband was diagnosed with cancer. through it all she has still given back now working with veterans with post traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury. their roof has been leaking for seven years but they haven't had the means to fix it. that's where the owens-corning comes. >> you can buy a new kitchen or new bath. if you don't have a roof that's not -- that's leaking,

or a roof that's not performing properly, it kind of affects your own house. >> reporter: owens-corning works with habitat for humanity. owens corning is providing the materials. their contractor mark j. fisher roofing the labor and this $15,000 plus project is free for the family. this family has given so much and the gratitude they have for receiving this help is unmatched. >> it's unbelievable. it's truly appreciated. >> reporter: in willow grove, katherine scott, channel6 "action news. in precision cancer treatment. using tools like advanced genomic testing and immunotherapy to bring more options to our patients. cancer treatment centers of america. we're not just fighting cancer any more. we're outsmarting it.

visit cancercenter.com/outsmart to learn more. after 8 years of chris christie, is kim guadagno the change new jersey really needs? guadagno is christie's hand-picked successor. says she's "proud to be part of the christie administration." guadagno was chris christie's right hand as our schools came under attack, critical services were underfunded, and our credit rating was downgraded...11 times. from the bridge to the beach, we've seen it all, and we've had enough.

kim guadagno isn't the change we need. kim guadagno isn't t-mobile's unlimited now includes netflix on us. that's right, netflix on us. get four unlimited lines for just forty bucks each. taxes and fees included. and now, netflix included. so go ahead, binge on us. another reason why t-mobile is america's best unlimited network. >> incredible being at the linc yesterday watching that 61-yard field goal go through the goal posts and today some of the bloom is off the rose. >> like a hangover today. the euphoria has subsided. the eagles came out of the win banged up. darren sproles is out for the season. as for fletcher cox's calf

injury and jordan hicks' ankle injury both are listed day to day. the injuries to sproles both require surgery. the 34-year-old sproles had said this might be his last. sproles made the pro bowl the last three seasons as a punt returner. coach pederson concedes the birds will lose a lot with sproles out. >> he's a great man, he's a great leader, well liked obviously on this team and in this locker room and in this community. he's a lost energy and it's hard to replace. it's hard to replace and so, you know, guys are just going to have to rally and pick up, you know, pick up that spot. it's unfortunate that, you know, the injury has to happen and sometimes it happens to great people and great men and it's just the unfortunate side of the business. >> more from that game in just a second. who's ready to hoop it up right now. the sixers open training camp

tomorrow. today this optimistic team met with the media in camden. jaime apody was there. >> reporter: if this sight doesn't get you excited then you're not a sixers fan. the big three, the team's future together for the first time. joel embiid says his timetable for being good to go is the first regular season game. he's taking it slow. >> it's not just about where i been it's also about like being in the best shape possible which i'm not yet at that level. >> reporter: someone who is finally is ben simmons after missing his entire rookie season with a broken foot. >> i'm ready to go. so, a hundred percent cleared to play and just been working out playing five on five pickup so back where i was before and i'm a lot better now. playing pretty well compared to last year. i'm a much better player. it's not even close. >> reporter: simmons will have some competition for rookie of the year with his newest back court mate

markelle fultz who has some big plans. >> getting back to the playoffs. >> reporter: yesterday a bunch of sixers took in an eagles game embiid with surely the largest celebration of jake elliott's game winning field goal. >> people screaming my name, trust the process, all over the place. it was amazing. >> reporter: and he hopes to be amazing this year, too. in camden, new jersey, jaime apody channel6 "action news." >> the nhl preseason continues tonight the flyers will visit the rangers. the phillies are back home for their final home stand of the year. the nats are in town tonight much the phillies need one win over their final six games to avoid a 100 loss season. >> to me it's just a number, you know, 99, 98, a hundred, i mean, we are who we are. we played very well -- much better the second half than we did in the first half so i'm pleased with that. >> finally back to the last second eagles victory from yesterday. you need to hear and see

merrill reese's call. >> the kick is away and the kick is -- it's good. and the eagles win 61 yards. the longest kick in eagles history. oh, my goodness. 61 yards. what a game. did you love it? what a game. >> you got to love him. >> he needs to get a little energy. >> yeah, pump it a little bit. >> all right, merrill. thank you. meteorologist cecily tynan with the accuweather forecast when we continue in just a moment. >> ♪

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>> week ahead from accuweather and cecily tynan. >> and it starts hot -- it starts hot, it ends cool. we have much cooler weather on the way. let's go live on sky6 taking a look at the ben franklin bridge. and we have kind of hazy sunshine out there and one good place to be, city hall at the dillworth splash park, a lot of kids heading there to try to stay cool today because today not only did we have temps in the 90's, we have dewpoints well up into the 60's so there's a lot of moisture in the air. the dewpoint in philadelphia, 68 degrees. in reading and lancaster dewpoints in the 70's. that's a tropical air mass. we will be staying humid through tonight and really through the next two days. although temperatures will begin to ease back a little bit but right now the heat index makes it feel like 89 in philadelphia, feels like 93 in allentown, allentown tying a record high today of 92 and reading currently feels like 91. a lot cooler at the shore with that sea breeze. temperatures only in the 70's but you do want to be careful

if you're at the shore and the delaware beaches. thanks to hurricane maria satellite and action radar showing this storm is slowly moving north off the southeast coast. it will continue to do that for the next couple of days and the actual cold front that will bring us relief from the heat, it's still well to the west across the plains. so we have two more days of warm humid air although winds will shift tomorrow out of the east. so, we won't be in the 90's but we'll still be well up into the 80's. tonight mostly clear warm and sticky. 69 in philadelphia. allentown 65. wilmington 67 and cape may 68 degrees. tomar ya' continues to slowly drift to the north. we have this ridge of high pressure, winds out of the east so it's going to be humid. it's going to be warm with a high of 86 degrees. on wednesday, one more day really feeling like summer. 88 degrees. then that cold front sweeps through. that cools us off. it also will kick maria out to sea. so that will not be reaching

our latitude. right now it's 280 miles south-southeast of cape hatteras north carolina maximum sustained winds 80 miles per hour. this has weakened to a category one hurricane drifting north at 7 miles per hour. it gets close to cape hatteras by wednesday and then when that cold front it does kick it out to sea. the problem again, though, next three days rip currents will be a high risk so you really do want to be careful. so, the exclusive accuweather 7-day forecast, tomorrow good amount of sunshine. it's warm, it's muggy but not as hot as today, a high of 86 degrees. on wednesday, ahead of that cold front, bump it up to 88 degrees. that front moves through wednesday night into thursday morning. could have a few showers thursday morning. i think most areas the front passes through dry. the humidity drops. it's breezy, it's a pretty nice day on thursday, 82 degrees. friday 75 degrees. much cooler conditions. it will be dry and then as we head into saturday, a piece of upper level energy will roll through. that will bring us a mixture of clouds and sunshine, possibility of some showers,

69 degrees. on sunday, sun with a few clouds, a high of 71 degrees. and monday feeling like fall with a high of 73. so, it stays warm and humid the next few days. friday it will feel like fall. so, fall weather arriving just a week behind schedule. >> thanks, cecily. finally tonight a tech billionaire is stirring up philadelphia's great cheesesteak debate. facebook founder mark zuckerberg rolled up in his limo to pat's in south philadelphia last night and ordered mistakes with whiz. in his facebook post he writes he traveled all the way to philadelphia for the best cheesesteaks in the land. his proclamation earned him thousands of comments with many questioning how and why he chose pat's over geno's and others. while that question remains unanswered one thing is clear, he does know how to order like a local. absolutely. abc's "world news tonight" with david muir next on

channel6. "action news" continues at 10:00 on phl 17 with brian taff, sharrie williams, adam joseph and ducis rodgers. then please join us at 11:00 here on channel6 for a special report. a notorious drug haven that sat in philadelphia's kensington has now been cleaned up and shut down. tonight investigative reporter wendy saltzman goes back to the area once known as the bad lands. she has an exclusive first look at the remarkable improvements made to the area an area that addicts once called home. that is tonight only on "action news" at 11:00. for cecily tynan, ducis rodgers, and the entire "action news" team, i'm jim gardner. we hope you'll join us for "action news" at 11:00. >> ♪ fran grenier.

new jersey born and raised. like his father before him, he served our country with honor in the navy. came home and worked his way up from floor technician to supervisor at the salem power plant. as a husband and father, grenier knows how families struggle to make ends meet. that's why he'll fight to cut our taxes, and stand up to career politicians like steve sweeney. if we want to change trenton, there's only one way. fran grenier.

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tonight, the growing firestorm. president trump versus the nfl. growing backlash to the president's angry words about athletes who protest during the national anthem. >> get that son of a [ bleep ] off the field. >> from patriots owner bob kraft, quarterback tom brady to lebron james, on live tv today. players locking arms across the country. tensions boiling over among fans. and tonight, the white house is asked, with north korea, with health care, with the emergency in puerto rico, why this? why now? all of this as the governor of puerto rico says they are dealing with a humanitarian disaster, that they need help. hurricane maria. tropical storm warnings along parts of the east coast right now. chaos and arrests on the hill tonight. protesters worried about losing their health insurance hauled off. republicans can only afford to